visual culturehttp://www.librarypoint.org/taxonomy/term/5178/0
enBelieving Is Seeing: Observations on the Mysteries of Photography by Errol Morrishttp://www.librarypoint.org/believing_is_seeing_morris
<div class="terms clearfix"><ul class="taxonomy-list"><li><a href="/taxonomy/term/4085">Courtney McAllister</a></li></ul></div><div class="terms clearfix"><ul class="taxonomy-list"><li><a href="/taxonomy/term/2757">Nonfiction</a></li></ul></div><div class="terms clearfix"><ul class="taxonomy-list"><li><a href="/taxonomy/term/3241">Photography</a></li><li><a href="/taxonomy/term/5177">relativism</a></li><li><a href="/taxonomy/term/5178">visual culture</a></li></ul></div><div class="terms clearfix"><ul class="taxonomy-list"><li><a href="/taxonomy/term/28">LibraryPoint Blog</a></li><li><a href="/taxonomy/term/2671">Shelf Life Blog</a></li></ul></div><div class="field field-name-field-blog-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><img src="http://www.librarypoint.org/sites/librarypoint.org/files/imagecache/believing_is_seeing.jpg" alt="Believing Is Seeing: Observations on the Mysteries of Photography by Errol Morri" title="Believing Is Seeing: Observations on the Mysteries of Photography by Errol Morris" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p><em>&ldquo;Our beliefs do not determine what is true or false. They do not determine objective reality. But they do determine what we see.&rdquo;</em></p>
<p>In <a href="http://ipac.librarypoint.org/ipac20/ipac.jsp?session=133I600128IM0.16131&amp;profile=remote&amp;uri=link=3100019~!1292494~!3100001~!3100002&amp;aspect=basic_search&amp;menu=search&amp;ri=1&amp;source=~!horizon&amp;term=Believing+is+seeing+%3A+observations+on+the+mysteries+of+photogra">Believing Is Seeing</a>, Errol Morris investigates the complex relationship between documentary photographs and the truth we assume they deliver. Best known as the gifted documentarian behind films such as <a href="http://ipac.librarypoint.org/ipac20/ipac.jsp?session=133I600128IM0.16131&amp;profile=remote&amp;uri=link=3100019~!1091360~!3100001~!3100002&amp;aspect=basic_search&amp;menu=search&amp;ri=7&amp;source=~!horizon&amp;term=The+fog+of+war+eleven+lessons+from+the+life+of+Robert+S.+McNamara">The Fog of War</a>, <a href="http://ipac.librarypoint.org/ipac20/ipac.jsp?session=133I600128IM0.16131&amp;profile=remote&amp;uri=link=3100019~!1165047~!3100001~!3100002&amp;aspect=basic_search&amp;menu=search&amp;ri=3&amp;source=~!horizon&amp;term=Standard+operating+procedure&amp;index=PALLTI">Standard Operating Procedure</a>, and <a href="http://ipac.librarypoint.org/ipac20/ipac.jsp?session=133I600128IM0.16131&amp;profile=remote&amp;uri=link=3100019~!849848~!3100001~!3100002&amp;aspect=basic_search&amp;menu=search&amp;ri=5&amp;source=~!horizon&amp;term=The+thin+blue+line&amp;index=PALLTI">The Thin Blue Line</a>, Morris has spent years pondering how authenticity, truth, and appearance converge and complicate one another. It is hardly surprising then that Morris&rsquo;s analysis of documentary photography is insightful and accessible.</p>
<p>Errol Morris&rsquo;s cinematic explorations often fixate on a specific figure or series of events. He then breathes life into the topic by artfully combining provocative interviews and extensive research. <a href="http://ipac.librarypoint.org/ipac20/ipac.jsp?session=133I600128IM0.16131&amp;profile=remote&amp;uri=link=3100019~!1292494~!3100001~!3100002&amp;aspect=basic_search&amp;menu=search&amp;ri=1&amp;source=~!horizon&amp;term=Believing+is+seeing+%3A+observations+on+the+mysteries+of+photogra">Believing is Seeing</a> successfully incorporates this methodology while simultaneously deconstructing the very notion of documentary veracity. The book consists of essays, each one describing a case study in which documentary photographs created controversy, conflicting interpretations, or troubling implications. Morris elucidates both the context and reception of each image with interviews and archival research.</p>
<p>He also analyzes both contemporary and historical images, demonstrating that many of the same issues and questions have been recurring since the advent of photography. Whether the photograph was taken in 1855 during the Crimean War or in 2003 at Abu Ghraib, our collective tendency to equate an image with a finalized truth has been problematic. To borrow Morris&rsquo;s succinct phrasing, &ldquo;&hellip;photographs allow us to think we know more than we really do. We can imagine a context that isn&rsquo;t really there.&rdquo;</p>
</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-blog-video field-type-file field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><span class="file"><img class="file-icon" alt="" title="video/youtube" src="/modules/file/icons/video-x-generic.png" /> <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OHNf4No5WtY" type="video/youtube; length=0">Recovering Reality: A Conversation with Errol Morris</a></span></div></div></div>Tue, 27 Mar 2012 05:00:00 +0000vjohnson17154 at http://www.librarypoint.org